Feeder for reversible fluid systems



July 26, 1938. D. R. HlLLls l 2,124,948

` FEEDER FOR REVERSIBLE FLUID SYSTEMS Filed May 9. 193e INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

20 by-pass valve chambers are in a vertical position, ing with port |33 through passagesV in the plug Patented July 26, l l a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FEEDER Foix REVERSIBLE FLUID SYSTEMS David R. Hillis, Detroit, Mich., assignor to Trabon Engineering Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application May 9, 1936, Serial No. 78,784

3 Claims.4 (,Cl. 184-7) The presentinvention relates to improvements in which such feeders are used. The body porin feeders for a lubricating system of the single tion is also provided with a discharge port' |35 pipe line dow-reversing type and is a continuaadapted for connection toa branchl pipe or to tion in part of my application Serial No. 738,656, an associated device or to a bearing or a receiving 5 filed August 6, 1934. This application is a. condevice. 5 tinuation in part of the feeder disclosed but not The body portion is provided with a cylinder claimed per se in my said Iformer application. |36 in which is mounted a reciprocable fluid In my former Patent No. 1,997,406, I disclosed pressure-operating piston |31. The body is also three species of feeders of the single pipe line counterbored at the ends of this cylinder |36 to flow-reversing typevand the present invention is permit suitable cylinder heads to be inserted as 10 a specic improvement over those therein deshown and to form what may be considered valve scribed and claimed. In all feeders of this na- Chambers |4| and |43 in which end plugs |55 ture, unless springs are used for aiding the action and |63 with suitable iioating valves and passages of the by-pass valves, there is a tendency for the may be inserted.

l5 b y-pass valves to permit fluid to pass right Two cylindrical valve chambers |38 and |39 15 through the feeder without discharging a quanare also provided in the body and they are preftity of lubricant to its associated bearing or other erably disposed on ODDOSite Sides 0f the Cylinder 'receiving device. This tendency is more noticeand preferably Parallel thereto- The VVe Chamable^when the feeders are mounted so that the ber |38, at one end, has a duct |40 communicatthus permitting gravity to act on the valves when |56 which is inserted in valve chamber |4| and. l the system is at rest, especially when light oil is at the other end, said valve chamber |38 has a used as the lubricant. duct |42 vcommunicating with port |34 through An object of the present invention is therefore passages in the plug |63 which plug is inserted in the provision of a feeder that is more efficient in valve chamber |43. 25 operation and less likely to fail to operate regard- One end fvalve chamber |39 has a. duct |44 less of the position in which it may be mounted comlmlnicating With port |33 through passages and regardless of the medium which it handles. in the plug |56 which is inserted'in the valve All former feeders of this type were so conchamber |4| and the other end of said valve structed that flow of lubricant through the feeder chamber |39 has a ductv |45 communicating With 30v to the pipe line4 or conduitwas restricted. vport |34 through passages in the plug |63 which It is therefore another object of this invention is inserted in the valve chamber |43. At each to provide a feeder with suiiicient clearance end of the cylinder |36 there is an inlet and outthrough the by-pass passages to permit unrelet duct or service port, onebeing designated as stricted iow of uid under pressure. |36a and the other as |36, and these ducts or 35 The invention is fully disclosed by way of exports communicate with intermediate portions of ample in the following description and in the the valve chamber |39 as hereinafter described. accompanying drawing in which: The discharge port |35 communicates with the Fig. 1 is a sectional view of afeeder embodying central portion of the valve chamber |39 and a 40 the present invention taken on the line of central communicating or by-pass port or pas- 40 Fig. 4, A sage |46 connects the centralvportion of valve Fig. 2 is a sectional View of my feeder taken on chamber |38 with thel central portion of cylinder line 2-2 of Fig. 1, 4 |36.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of my feeder taken'o A dumb-bell piston type valve |41 having two line 3-3 of Fig. 1, and heads |48 and |49 is mounted in the valve cham- 45 Fig. 4 is a sectional View of my feeder taken .on ber |38 in such manner that the annular passage line 4--4 of Fig. 1. surrounding the reduced portion between said Reference to these views in which like characvalve heads |48 and M9 always registers, when ters are employed to designate like parts throughthev valve is shifted to either of its extreme posi- 50 out will now be made. tions, with the communicating passage |46 and 50 y The numeral |32 designates the body portion with one or the other of two by-pass ducts |59 andV in whichI provide two oppositely disposed dual- |5| communicating respectively with suitable service ports |33 and |34, each being adapted for passages in the plugs inserted in valve chambers connection by any suitable means to apipe line or |4| and |43 or they may be said to communicate conduit which forms part of the circuit or system directly with said respective valve chambers. 55

The valve chamber |39 has a similar dumbbell piston type valve |52 having heads |53 and |54 so arranged that the annular passage surrounding the reduced portion between said valve heads |53 and |54 always connects one of the ducts Lor ports |36Si or |36b with the discharge Port |35,fwhen the valve Each of the plugs |56. and |63 theequivalent of the corresponding parts shown in Fig. 5 of the drawing in my application Serial No. '138,656

wherein it is said:

Mounted in the valve chamber Hlfoutwardly `valve chamber |4i, thus providing a passage '|51 around said sleeve. In other words, this passage !51 is, in reality, a portion of the valve chamber |4| in which the disk and sleeve is mounted. Said sleeve |56 is ported at |58 and at |59 and mounted in said sleeve and in said disk is a reciprocating piston valve |66 having a length equal to the portion of the sleeve between the two ports |58 and |59. A stop pin |6| is mounted in said sleeve |56 to stop the outward movement of said valve |66 in such position that lubricant or other fluids flowing into the valve chamber |4| from the by-pass passage |50 may flow through the disk |55 and into its extending sleeve and out of port |59, thence through passageway |51 and back into sleeve |56 through port |58, and thence through port |33 in to the pipe line when liow of lubricant through the circuit is passing in that direction.

Mounted in the valve chamber |43 outwardly of opening of by-pass duct |5|, is a valve disk |62 having a central opening with an outwardly extending ported sleeve |63 communicating with port |34, the said sleeve having an outer diameter less than the inner diameter of the valve chamber |43, thus providing a passage |64 around said sleeve. In other words, the passage |64 is,

in reality, a portion of the valve chamber |43 in which the disk and sleeve is mounted. Said 'sleeve |63'is ported at |65 and at |66, and mounted in said sleeve and in `said dis'k is a reciproeating piston valve |61 having a length equal to the portion of the sleeve between the two ports |65 and |66. A stop pin |68 is mounted in said sleeve |63 to stop the outward movement of said valve |61 in such position that lubricant or other fluids flowing into thevalve chamber |43 from. the by-pass passage |5| may flow through the disk |62 and into its extending sleeve andoutfof port |66, thence through passage-way |64 and back into sleeve |63 through port |65, and thence -throughport |34 into the pipe line, when flow of lubricant through the circuit is passing in that direction.

Any suitable means such as the abutment members shown on the inner ends of valves |66 and |61 may be used to stop the respective inner strokes of said valves by contact against suit' able plugs, which close the ends of.valve chamber |36, in such position that lubricant may enter behind them, when necessary, to make the return strokes.

Similarly, I provide a reduced portion or circumferential groove on the inner end of each .in either one af plug and I bore a passage diametrically therethrough so that fluid may pass into thecylindrical bore. of the plug on the inner side of the floating valve exactly as it could do so in the embodiment of my invention shown in Fig. 5 "of vthe aforesaidtapplicatlon of which 4this is a A e oating valves in" 61 are mounted `n the cylindricaljbore 'offthese-plugs ju'st as they were in the sieeges of my fn r application and e same type oi' stop pins 16| and |61 are pro- A.vided to limit the outer movement of said valves so as always to keep respective ports |58 and |65 open.

The operation of my improved feeder is as follows, assuming the feeder to be connected up in a `reversible-flow fluid distributing system and that fluid under pressure is flowing thereinto from the right through port |34! As the fioating'valve |61 is mounted in the direct line o'f flow of the fluid under pressure, it quickly shifts to block uid from flowing around it and into passage |5|. The fluid can then only pass through ports |65,v ducts |43 and/or through port |66 into circumferential groove |64thence through ducts |42 and |45 respectively into the right hand end of valve chambers |38 and |39, causing the dumbbell plstons therein to shift to the left. No further fluid can then flow through the right hand end of valve chamber |38 but the rightrhand' end of valve chamber |39 now communicates with cylinder |36 through service port |36".

Pressure now builds up on the right handside of the piston causing lt to movel to the left, thus discharging the predetermined quantity of uid that was on the left of the piston, having been charged by a previous operation. This discharge Hows out of the cylinder through port |36a into valve chamber |39 between valve heads |53 and |54 and thence out the discharge port |35.

As the ow of fluid into the feeder continues from the right, it by-passes out of cylinder 36 through the central by-pass port or duct |46 into valve chamber |38 between valve heads |48 and |49 which then guide lt into by-pass duct |50 from whence it ows into the inner end of valve chamber |4|, which in this embodiment comprises a circumferential groove around the inner end of plug |56 and thence through the connecting port into the central bore in the plug, forcing valve |60 to the left, then it passes around valve |60 through port |59, circumferential groove |51, and

the ducts which correspond to the outer portion vof valve chamber |4| and through duct |58 and thence out port |33.

As the reverse operation is obvious, it is not thought necessary to describe it.

It is readily vunderstood that various changes and modifications may be made in the construction of the improvement as I have but described land illustrated its preferred embodiment and I portion of its associated control chamber to ow out through its associated dual-service port. a cylinder and a piston in said cylinder, a communicating passageway opening to both of said control chambers and communicating with said delivery port, a duct at each end of said cylinder communicating with said communicating passageway, valve means in said communicating passageway controlling the lubricant supplied to said cylinder under pressure and controlling the discharge therefrom of the measured quantity of lubricant, a second communicating passage- .way opening to said control chambers near the outer portions thereof, a duct connecting said second communicating passageway with said cylinder, a by-pass duct near each end of said second communicating passageway, each by-pass duct permitting iiow of lubricant from said second communicating passageway to the inner portion of its associated now-control chamber, and

valve control means adapted to block said second communicating passageway to the continued flow of lubricant entering from Vone of said control chambers and to direct lubricant entering said second passageway from said cylinder to pass from said second passageway into the othercontrol chamber. Y.

2. A feeder for lubricating bearings comprising va body having a cylinder, a piston reciprocable in said cylinder, said body having two dual-service ports each serving Valternately as loading and discharge ports to a lubricant conveying means capable of conducting lubricant under pressure in either direction, a pair of now-directing control chambers, one associated with one of saidports and the other with the other of said ports. a member mounted in each of said control chambers, said member having a bore and an out- .around said valve and out of its associated dualservice port, a valve chamber connecting said control chambers at points adjacent the outer ends thereof, ducts at each end of said cylinder communicating with said valve chamber, and a discharge port communicating with said valve chamber and adapted for connection to a bearing, valve means adapted to direct lubricant under pressure entering either one of said dualservice ports to iiow through said valve chamber and through one of said ducts into said cylinder on4 one side of said piston and to direct lubricant being discharged from the other side of said piston to flow through said other duct and into said valve chamber and out through vthe discharge port, a second valve'chamber connecting said control chambers at points adjacent the outer ends thereof and communicating with said cylinder, a by-pass duct near each end ci said second valve chamber communicating with each control chamber adjacent its inner end, and valve means adapted to close said valve chamber and by-pass ducts tothe direct and continuous ow of lubricant therethrough, and adaptedtc direct lubricant entering said valve .chamber from said cylinder to ow through a by-pass duct and control chamber to the dual-servicev port opposite the one through which lubricant is entering the device.

3. A lubricating device adapted ior application to a system wherein lubricant may flow in either direction through a lubricant conveying means forming a circuit from a source of supply to a plurality of bearings. and back to said source of supply, comprising a body member having a plurality of inlet and outlet flow-control chambers each having a dual-service port adapted for connection to the lubricant conveying means and a discharge port adapted for connection to a bearing, a cylinder for lubricant within said body.. a piston within said cylinder, ducts to said cylinder and adapted to act as an outlet and inlet passage, a cylindrical passage opening to said inlet and outlet ducts and communicating with said body member inlet and outlet control chambers and vwith the discharge port to the bearing, and a piston valve in said cylindrical connecting passage for controlling by pressure on the lubricant the alternate iiow of lubricant into said cylinder and the filling of said cylinder rst on one side and then on the other side of said piston, and for controlling the alternate discharge of lubricant into the bearing ilrst from one side and then from the other side of said piston, a second cylindrical passageway opening to the body member inlet and outlet control chambers and associated ports to the lubricant conveying means and communicating with said cylinder, a by-pass duct near each end of said second cylindrical passage communicating therewith and with the inner portion of the body member inlet and outlet control chamber adjacent the end of said passage, means in each of said iiow control chambers adapted to permit lubricant to ilow therefrom Ainto both of said cylindrical passages and inder has vdischarged lubricant to the bearing,

to ilow through the by-pass duct and the control chamber to the dual-service port connected to the lubricant conveying means which is opposite the one through which lubricant is `then entering the device.

DAVID R. HILLIS. 

